A Jamaican in My Foxhole
I don't know about you, but if a war broke out I'd want my fellow Jamaican in the foxhole beside me.I wouldn't want a Trini, Bajan, Guyanese or anyone else from the region.
I'd want a Jamaican.
The reasons might be obvious to all, and need not be stated... but weyadres know how to "chuck badness" and a time of war is a pretty good time to "show dem bwoy who really run tings."
Perhaps the thing we are lacking here at home is for some foolish country to think that it could try to invade us, or bully us or use any kind of violence against us. I have a feeling that it would coalesce our patriotism, our aggression and our street smarts in a way that would change us forever.
After all, it's been awhile since we got rid of the Brits...
Unfortunately, without a real war to bring us together, we are left with the destructive violence of gang warfare, political fighting, religious cass-cass and good old man-woman conflicts. These are the social equivalents of shooting ourselves in the foot -- over and over again.
In other words, we are a people itching for a fight, but .... we can't find a good one to fight.
Labels: Ja culture
posted by fwade @ 12/26/2007
4 Comments:
Hi
I have always respected your viewpoints, however, with this statement in your blog, as follows:
"Unfortunately, without a real war to bring us together, we are left with the destructive violence of gang warfare, political fighting, religious cass-cass and good old man-woman conflicts. These are the social equivalents of shooting ourselves in the foot -- over and over again.
In other words, we are a people itching for a fight, but .... we can't find a good one to fight. "
IMHO Jamaica is alredy AT war, and unless it is SEEN/TREATED as a WAR, the upheaval will never end.
Peace
Hmmm... maybe a clarification is needed.
I'd say that... while Jamaicans are at war, the country of Jamaica is not at war.
If the country of Jamaica were at war with another country, that would be what I termed a "real war."
We have violence between individuals and groups, but in this entry I wanted to reserve the term "war" for inter-country conflicts. This comes from the way I witnessed the word "war" being used in the US, where there are wars declared against everything, everyday -- so the word has lost most of it's meaning.
That is until the war against Iraq. And Afghanistan....
Hi
I do hold you in high esteem, and I stand corrected.
However, allow me the space to clarify my interpretation.
"I'd say that... while Jamaicans are at war, the country of Jamaica is not at war."
Your above statement is correct, and that is what I was strongly referencing in my original comment.
I do apologize for any misunderstanding.
Peace
Morpheus,
I am pretty sure we were agreeing all along!
I added my comment in for other other readers' benefit, just in case they didn't follow my original post.
So, no apology needed. I think our posting back and forth helps us all to think about these issues.
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